Modern classical and avant garde concert music of the 20th and 21st centuries forms the primary focus of this blog. It is hoped that through the discussions a picture will emerge of modern music, its heritage, and what it means for us.

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Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Friedrich Goldmann, Four Trios One Quartet

Composer Friedrich Goldmann would have celebrated his 75th birthday last month. The Darmstadt-Stockhausen student (1959) amassed a large body of works hailed in East Germany and eventually throughout Europe and was, among many other things, a conductor of Stockhausen's Gruppen on the original celebrated DGG recording.

His music has undergone a major revival since 2009, with the entire remainder of his previously unperformed chamber and orchestral works enjoying public premieres among other things. The current release, a single CD in a lavish box presentation complete with a 48-page booklet, Four Trios One Quartet (Macro SWR2 M46) gives us his complete trios of 1986-2004 and his "Oboe Quartet" from 2000. Two of the recordings were supervised by Goldmann himself before his death; all involve musicians with intimate experience of the composer's music, including Ingo Goritzki (oboe), Bjorn Lehmann (piano) and members of Ensemble Mosaik and the KNM Ensemble.

In the end one is treated to some beautiful performances of some exceptional Goldmann works, with a high-modern rigor and purity of means, yet an open creative stance that does not show either rigidity or formulaic calcification--but rather a composer at the imaginative peak of his inventive powers.

I somehow have missed Goldmann's music--no doubt because during his tenure in East Germany not so many composers were readily heard from there in the States, either on recordings or otherwise. It turns out it was my loss as this music has very much to recommend it and in such dedicated performances as these one hears the singular voice of the composer in ideal terms.

And so I in turn do not hesitate to recommend this volume to you, my confirmed modernist readers! This is music on a high plane that even a newcomer to classic modernism might appreciate, given a little effort. So, take the plunge.

A triumph of dedication on the part of the performers, and of high creative achievement on the part of Maestro Goldmann. Bravo!

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About the Blog

Grego Applegate Edwards's Classical-Modern Music Review blogsite covers recent releases or re-issues of recordings that feature classical and concert music, primarily of the 20th and 21st Centuries, but earlier music as well when warranted. All styles of relevance will be addressed from Late-Romantic and Neo-Romantic through High-Modern, Avant Garde and Post-Modern styles. Chamber music, orchestral, choral, operatic, and electronic forms will be considered as well as music that combines a classical element with one or more other stylistic elements. Earlier periods will get coverage when a release has something to say to us. Both established and unfamiliar composers will get attention. All content copyright 2007-17 by Grego Applegate Edwards.

About Me

I am a life-long writer, musician, composer and editor. I wrote for Cadence for many years, a periodical covering jazz and improv music. My combined Blogspot blogs (as listed in the links) now cover well over 3,000 recordings in review. It's been a labor of love. The music is chosen because I like it, for the most part, so you won't find a great deal of nastiness here. I have no affiliations and gain nothing from liking what I do, so that makes me somewhat impartial. I do happen to like a set of certain musics done well, so it's not everything released that gets coverage on these blogs. I have eleven volumes of compositions available on amazon.com. Just type in "Grego Applegate Edwards" to find them. (But one is under "Gregory Applegate Edwards.") I went to music and higher education schools and got degrees. It changed my life and gave me the ability to think and write better. I've studied with master musicians, too. The benefits I gained from them are invaluable. I appreciate my readers. You are why I write these reviews. I hope the joy of music enriches your life like it does mine. Thank you. And thank you to all the artists that make it possible.